


Cacophony

by thedrunkenwerewolf, Timewaster123456789



Series: Heirverse: Phase 4 (Heir/Decimated) [13]
Category: Bleach
Genre: Aizen stress smokes and Gin joins him, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Cigarettes, Collaboration, Established Relationship, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Late at Night, M/M, Smoking, Voice being a dick, because we like subtle here, but Gin helps, in the place of nightmares, kudos to Time for carrying this piece, life is hard but just having someone there helps, some AiGin softness of the subtle variety, some fluff if you squint real hard, story cross references
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-29
Updated: 2021-01-29
Packaged: 2021-03-15 13:16:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,545
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29064945
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thedrunkenwerewolf/pseuds/thedrunkenwerewolf, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Timewaster123456789/pseuds/Timewaster123456789
Summary: On a night in Huecco Mundo when the voice in Aizen's head gets loud and starts spouting all of his negative thoughts back at him, Gin is the one who helps drown it out. Oneshot. Collab with Timewaster123456789.
Relationships: Aizen Sousuke/Ichimaru Gin
Series: Heirverse: Phase 4 (Heir/Decimated) [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1304060
Kudos: 1





	Cacophony

**Author's Note:**

> A/n: this is somewhat of a thematic counterpiece to Timewaster's 'Silence' that can be read independently, and that I originally wanted to do to surprise her. But I got so damn stuck, so she threw a brain slug at me and we ended up working together on it. And so we have this. Cacophony. Which is 100x better than what I originally had in mind.
> 
> Big thanks to Cat for coming up with the title because my brain just got stuck on 'noise', and also to Time for basically carrying both me and this piece and letting me monopolise her brain for a little while - and making her blow the dust off her magneto helmet. It was lovely working with you again :) I'll let you pack away your magneto helmet again now.
> 
> Notes/warnings: early phase 4 if you follow the heirverse though still a standalone piece. Voice being a dick. Dark thoughts and themes because I'm evil and Time enables me. Some AiGin softness of the subtle variety. Story cross references- most notably the tar from Consequences- but when are there not?
> 
> As always, enjoy the story. And feedback is nice and keeps us writers writing&posting.

_Silence. A complete absence of sound._

_Cacophony. A harsh discordant mixture of sounds._

_There was always one or the other, and no peace to be found in either._

**Cacophony**

Sousuke always hated silence. Even as a child, even before Jac – the voice – quiet was intolerable. It was ten times more intolerable since the voice. It was a thousand times worse now he was in the hollow world. The land of eternal night. The place of nightmares, and monsters besides. If not for Gin's presence, he'd not have slept more than a few hours since he'd arrived. Which was several months ago.

He gently shook that thought away and glanced over at Gin fast asleep beside him. All the lines of care soothed from his face in sleep. Looking completely harmless.

But he knew better. Ichimaru Gin was a killer. A cold hearted snake when the mood struck him. He's witnessed for himself with his own two eyes just how cold and deadly the younger man could be. And again he gave thanks that Gin was on _his_ side.

He'd have hated to put in so much work and effort into shaping gin thus, only to watch him end up a turncoat and get a knife in the back for his trouble.

_Ha, as if that's all it is..._ Kyouka snorted in the back of his mind. Fine, a knife in the back and a broken heart for his trouble.

He smiled to himself at the alternate timeline, again grateful it wasn't his current one. Imagine having to live with the voice's constant chattering and needling, hear it calling him a stupid piece of shit and having no refuge from it. No sanctuary. No rest...

_Don't think about that._

He sighed softly, pushing those thoughts away. For a rare moment content with where he was. The quiet of the room would soon fray his nerves with wondering just how long the voice would let him enjoy the peace.

It wasn't usually very long. Though the timeframes were always inconsistent.

Just to keep him on his toes.

The room was quiet. Too quiet. Gin would call it peaceful; he'd just be waiting on tenterhooks, nerves on edge, for the voice's inevitable needling. Reminding him yet again he was a stupid piece of shit. Piling on the guilt as if he didn't feel bad enough about the hateful things he'd done.

As if he didn't feel enough of a stupid piece of shit.

He shook his head to gently free it of the thought. Though the dread crept up into his stomach anyway. The voice latched onto anything it could. Better not to give it ammunition. It had enough as it was. It didn't need any more.

He sighed tiredly and stroked Gin's hair. Better just to enjoy the peace while he could.

If he could.

Even if that only ended up being a handful of minutes.

_Urgh, gods, you're pathetic..._

A bitter smile twisted his lips and he sorely wished he had a cigarette in hand. _Ah. Here we go._

_What? You mean telling you the truth?_ The voice asked, feigning shock. _Come on little Sousuke, you know damn well as I how pathetic you are. What happened to you? You've gone soft. Gotten weak._

Sousuke closed his eyes. Already tired of this. _I'm not weak._

_Really? Why else would you need your_ _**pet** _ _with you?_

There was a sneer on the word 'pet' that Sousuke misliked. But he said noting. Trying to ignore the fiend inside his head. Failing miserably. Like he'd failed at everything else.

_Not that you deserve him at all, after what **you** did to him. Honestly I don't know what he sees in you. He must need his head examined if he's still here with you._

_After you LIED._

_After you CHEATED._

_I mean what kind of person does that? What moron goes and fucks up the best damn thing that ever happened to him?_

_You BROKE him that day, do you know? You Fucked Him Up. The only way you could. You tainted him. I told you before. You're poison. You kill everything you touch. Destroy peoples happiness. You fuck up everything good up and leave it Hollow._

Sousuke took in a deep breath, in and out. Searching for some shred of sanity. It was like trying to find a spot of calm in a maelstrom.

_You're a tar pit._

"Enough!" Aizen grabbed the first thing that came to hand—a book he'd been keeping experiment notes in—and threw it at the wall. Of course he failed at that too, it hit the window instead of the wall, sailing out into the flower garden in a crash of glass.

_Fuck._

Jac laughed.

"W-what's going on?"  
Aizen turned to find Gin sitting up next to him blinking blearily. _FUCK._

"Sou?" Gin mumbled, still trying to drag himself out of sleep. "Wha's 'appnin?"

_FUCK!_

He turned to Gin, thankful for once that his partners instincts honed in the Rukon were dulling thanks to decades of constant safety. Giving him enough time to come up with a response.

"Who broke the window?"

The voice laughed again, a constant soundtrack to his life, and all the words he might've said died in his throat.

Gin clutched his arm. "Is someone here?"

The voice laughed even harder.

Aizen wrapped a comforting arm around Gin's shoulders, "No Gin it's alright. I thought I saw something. Just jumping at shadows I guess."

His arm was shaking and he gripped the fluffy cloth of Gin's midnight pajamas tighter in an effort to hold still.

"You jumped kido first?" Gin asked waking more fully and raising his eyebrows.

"It was a big shadow," he answered not missing a beat. But Gins skepticism remained.

_And it was a book I threw.  
_  
"Uh huh, now say it without shakin like a damn leaf."

_Fuck._

"Bad dream again?" Gin offered softly.

Aizen nodded, "Sorry."

He let his arm drop to his side. That was a mistake, it just made the tremors more obvious and he dug his fingers into the blankets. It seemed everything he did tonight was going to accomplish the opposite of what he wanted.

_Tonight?_ Jac snickered.

Okay fine. Everything he ever did.  
"Wanna talk about it?" Gin asked gently, as though any sudden or loud noises might startle him. Which to be fair, in his current state they probably would.

He let out an uneven sigh. Shook his head. Not trusting his voice enough to keep steady.

"Alright," Gin changed tack. "Will a cup of tea help?"

He nodded. Of course, a cup of tea wouldn't solve _all_ his problems, but it'd be a good start.

Gin smiled across at him. "Thought it might." The younger man was clearly trying to be upbeat enough for the both of them. And not doing very well. But he got points for the attempt. "C'mon, I'll brew a pot. We might be up a while and ya look like you could use one."

Sousuke managed a small smile of his own at that. _Well then I **must** look rattled_. But he was glad for the offer. A cup of hot tea would be just what the doctor ordered to drive the hill from his weary bones. So he let Gin lead him through to the kitchenette and watched him brew the tea, listening to Gin humming. Eyes kept firmly AWAY from any and all reflective surfaces. Particularly the large windows above the sink. Not wanting to see the grizzly bear skull or the thick black fur or the tar - most of all the tar - or those malicious red eyes that seemed to glow in the dark.

Gin brewed the tea, casting occasional surreptitious little glances at Aizen. His sun's eyes darted around like a dragonfly, scared to settle on any one surface too long. By the time the tea was brewed and turned to hand Aizen his cup he was staring fixedly at the floor.

_Fuck, this is bad._  
 _  
_ _You know what to do. You've been through far worse,_ Shinsou murmured gently.

"Here," Gin said softly, offering him the cup. His lover had to drag his eyes up off the floor to his face.  
"Tha's it, look at me. Don't worry bout anythin else. S'just you an me."

"You and me," his partner echoed numbly. Taking the tea with shaky hands. Gin would have to wait for the shock to wear off before getting anything out of him. He'd learned from experience Aizen told people things in his own time. Prying only made him clam up.

He took a few sips, slowly, willing himself to stop shaking. Gin was giving him that look again. That one that simultaneously comforted and disgusted him. His lip trembled a little and he took a quick sip of tea, wishing Gin would stop watching him.  
 _  
_ _You could just stop being pathetic._

He clenched his fist and rose, pacing while he drained his glass. The soothing liquid gave him a little more faith in his voice and he needed to hear something, anything other than Jac, so he turned to Gin.

"I'm planning to send Grimmjow to the human world to test the ryoka's strength."

"When?" Gin asked him. Trying not to appear too thrown by the sudden change of topic. But his Sun was pacing far too much like a caged animal for his liking so he counselled himself patience and pulled out his cigarette case.

"Two weeks."

Gin nodded at the short reply. "Smoke?"

"Please." The sound came out a little needier than Aizen liked, but Gin dutifully lit one up and passed it over.

"Think I'll join ya."

Aizen nodded to show his deep gratitude then closed his eyes as he took a long drag and slowly blew the smoke out his nose.

Silence stretched as they smoked. Finally, cig hanging from his hand he looked at Gin and smiled bitterly, "Ask."

Gin nodded and took another long drag from his smoke and blew the grey out in a sigh of mild relief. "What happened?"

Aizen shrugged. "The same thing that always happens." He said. "The voice making a load of fucking _noise."_ _  
_  
Gin nodded. His lovers tone wasn't angry, just tired. Gin suspected he'd been tired for a while.

"I'd just like one damn night where it's quiet." He took a other drag. Blew it out. "I'm so tired, Gin."

"I'm sorry," Gin whispered putting an arm around Aizen.

Aizen stiffened and hastily took another drag, "Not your fault."

Gin nodded and leant his head on his shoulder to offer what comfort he could. Little enough as that was. Though the feeling of uselessness stung. "Anything I can do to help?"

His lovers smile was a little softer. "Just be here." _Just be here like you've always been._

Gin managed a small smile at that. "Well that I can do easy," he replied. "Be more specific?"

Sousuke finally managed a little laugh. "Should've remembered you don't like vague. Just sit and talk?"

"About what?"

"Anything. Everything." He took another drag. "Nothing. Drown out the noise."

A pause. Long. Too long. "Please?"

Gin stared blinking. Desperation, open naked desperation wasn't something he'd heard from Aizen in a long time. It hurt. He scrambled frantically for a topic, anything that wasn't too loaded...

"Working on any new experiments I should be scared of?"

Aizen smirked around his cig. It was a mere ghost of his usuals but Gin would take it.

"Oh always," he answered, blowing smoke out into the air. "But you'd be best staying away from lab 2a for a while."

Gin squinted. "...whyyyy?"

"I'm working on a new breed of hollow mutts. For psychologically scarring the enemy. This batch ..." a pause while Aizen took a drag of his cigarette, "will take on the image of their opponents. At a touch they can extract the most emotionally potent memories of their victim. The end result is a distorted reflection, the hollow will become the manifestation of its victim's every insecurity."

Stomach twisting, Gin cut a glance at Aizen, a sadistic smile plastered on his face as he crushed out his smoke. For a moment Gin's heart stopped as he suspected that maybe it was not-Aizen. No the eyes were all wrong... too soft... too haunted.

He swallowed hard, handed over another smoke and tried to match Aizen's smile, "You ripped off face stealer."

"I _may_ have kept some of his blood," Aizen answered smugly as he lit up.

"Ah shouda known ya would. Plagarist." Gin stubbed out his own used up smoke and pulled out another. Trying to keep his hands steady as he tried to light up. But either the lighter or his trembling fingers - Gin suspected his fingers - weren't cooperating and get snarled at the incompetent digits and lighter.

"Here," Aizen called to him softly, gentle hands taking the lighter off him and lighting the fire and his smoke up for him. Gin took a long much needed and drag, and sighed out a small cloud of grey. He smiled. The little gesture proving to him this was still his Sun and not... the other person.  
"Thanks."

"Don't mention it," Aizen said. For the blink of an eye Gin saw the self-effacing smile that only he ever saw and rarely at that. Then Aizen was smug again. "And for the record I prefer to think of it as homage."

He exhaled slowly as he spoke and the smoke curled around his head like the devil himself.

"Still plagarism," Gin shook his head slowly. Lopsided smile on his face. Guess he was still tired. Though he was glad his Sun was feeling a little better. Less clouded over, anyway. "But consider me appropriately terrified of that experiment. Who ya gonna test on?"

"Syalzel or Nnoitra?"

Gin didn't even have to think. "Nnoitora." He blew out more grey. They really shouldn't smoke so much but fuck it, it was one of those nights. "Don' think I need t'say why."

Gin watched his lover blow out a soft cloud of grey and study him. "Want to get the prototype?" Aizen raised an eyebrow.

"Now?" Gin blinked, surprised. He'd thought Aizen was just talking a big game, not actually in fighting shape.

"You can give it the order," Aizen said in a cajoling tone.

A sadistic smile of his own spread across Gin's face. "That does sound nice... bit a payback neh?"

"He's probably asleep right now..." Aizen mused aloud. "And no time like the present."

"So whatcha waiting for?" Gin's asked, all sadism and smiles and lusting for blood and eager to be witnessing the night terrors incarnate in someone else for a change. Someone he _didn't_ actually give a fuck about. "C'mon, let's go cause some mayhem."

He stood and all but pulled Aizen out of his chair and Aizen managed a small laugh and a smile at his excitement. "All right, all right, I'm coming."

Gin smiled back at him. It wasn't the laugh he was used to hearing from Sousuke. It was a weak and tired thing. But it was an improvement over not smiling at all. And if he could drown out the awful cacophony in his Sun's head, even just a little, then he'd take it and run.


End file.
